At this very moment I am sitting and watching Aliens, the sequel to the hit film Alien. It is by far my favorite film of all time, what makes this film so good is the introduction of the colonial marines, badasses who travel the galaxy taking on threats to humanity.
I for one had been excited about 2 games recently, the release of the slightly disappointing AVP game has now passed me by without the slightest hint of interest and I just found out that the colonial marine game has been cancelled.
to start a trip down memory lane I thought I would share my history with the beloved HR Giger designed Xenomorph and his little buddy the face hugger.
Aliens: The Computer Game/1987 Amstrad CPC464
The first game I ever owned which featured the wall climbing extraterrestrials was this Amstrad game, your job was to move the six survivors through the facility to safety, fighting the aliens and eventually killing the queen. The game was part squad shooter, part survival horror and all round hard game to beat.
Each squad member had to be moved separately though the game and for its time the graphics where quite nice though most of the time all you would see was walls and doors, don't underestimate the scary factor every door you open would possibly lead you into an encounter with an alien and giving that you had very limited ammo. Each fight you got into was likely to be your last.
The game was absolutely huge as well with upwards of 30 floors and each floor having hundreds of interlinking rooms and corridors which led you too the elevator to the next floor.
Great game which brought the theme of the movie to the home consoles without losing that sense of horror and spectacle, though certainly doesn't hold up by today's standards.
Alien 3/1993 Sega Genesis
A great side scrolling shooter in the same vane as Contra, the game lets you play as Ripley as she fights her way through tons of the aliens and rescues survivors along the way. The game sets you in the same prison ship featured in the films and has you fighting through mess halls, prison cells and even the alien nest.
This game wasn't that difficult and featured a more gun heavy game play than the aliens game but was a ton of fun to play.
Alien Trilogy/1996 Playstation
Most people will remember this one, a retelling of the original trilogy on one awesome disk. One of the highlights of the original Playstation in my opinion and for me at least the first chance to fight the alien menace in full 3d, the game is very similar to Doom in the way that it plays and is just as fun to play.
One of the best moments in this game was when face huggers would grab you and block your vision making you fire wildly at the other aliens as you struggled to stay in the game.
Finally I would like to just present this one screenshot for colonial marines and lament at the loss of what might have been one of the greatest aliens games of all time.
This list is in no way concise but these where just some of my favourites. Let me know what your thoughts are on the recent AVP game or even the cancelled marines game.